Description

Ferdinando "Fred"
Buscaglione (23 November 1921 – 3 February 1960) was an Italian singer and actor who became very popular in the late
1950s. His public persona – the character he played both in his songs and his movies – was of a humorous mobster
with a penchant for whisky and women.

After perfecting his routine in night clubs and theatres he started
recording his songs in 1955; the first single (a shellac 78rpm record containing 'Che bambola' and 'Giacomino') sold
1,000,000 copies with close to no promotion, propelling him to a degree of fame he never considered possible.

By the end of 1950s, Buscaglione was one of Italy's most wanted entertainers. He appeared on advertising campaigns, on
television, in movies.

At 38 years of age he was killed in a car accident when his pink Ford Thunderbird
collided with a truck in the early hours before dawn in Rome, of all places, right before the U.S. embassy.